10 WWE PPVs That Changed EVERYTHING

Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels was no stone-cold classic, but WrestleMania XIV's main event helped make the Attitude Era's most important star. Crowned WWE Champion for the very first time, the company took the wrestler they'd already handed the ball to and told him to run faster, and he did, using this victory to become an industry-defining name and a permanent fixture on anyone's Mount Rushmore of wrestlers.

WWE smartly incorporated Mike Tyson into proceedings, using the controversial boxing star to draw boatloads of attention to their big event. Revealed as a DX collaborator a few weeks prior, 'Iron Mike' would turn on Michaels and co. during the bout. The special enforcer's quick three-count handed 'Stone Cold' the belt, helped mint WWE's new icon, and drew plenty of fresh eyes to a WrestleMania moment emblematic of Attitude's success as a whole. They played it perfectly, and the dividends were immediate.

XIV was a catalyst. When Austin took the gold, WCW Nitro had crushed Raw for 82 straight weeks in the Monday Night Wars. This trend was reversed two weeks later, when WWE finally overturned the deficit on 13 April 1997, falling behind Ted Turner's promotion only once throughout 'Stone Cold's' reign.